Didi Kuaidi invests $100m in Uber's biggest US rival Lyft

The ride-sharing and ride-hailing race in China was elevated on Wednesday when Didi Kuaidi, Uber Technologies Inc's biggest rival in the country, confirmed it has invested $100 million in Lyft Inc, Uber's biggest competitor in the United States.

The announcement, made in New York by Didi Kuaidi President Liu Qing and John Zimmer, co-founder and president of Lyft, confirmed recent media reports that cited sources as suggesting the investment was made in the spring.

Didi Kuaidi controls 80 percent of the overall ride-hailing market in China, where its services cover more than 360 cities. Uber operates in 11 Chinese cities, and is planning on entering 100 more in the next year.